Southern Portugal offers a fantastic diversity of habitats, and consequently an equally diverse array of birds, in a relatively small area, allowing us to visit several species rich areas without needing to travel long distances.

The Mediterranean climate of Southern Portugal is very agreeable to birds during the winter. Early February weather is pleasant, with the first signs of Spring coming and the first migrants just arriving from Africa. Coastal wetlands and interior grasslands host thousands of waterfowl, shorebirds, cranes, bustards, raptors and passerines. We anticipate encounters with a great diversity and number of birds. Some examples include: Graylag Goose, Eurasian Wigeon, Common and Red-crested Pochards, Ferruginous and Tufted Ducks, Greater Flamingo, Eurasian Spoonbill, White and Black Storks, Squacco Heron, Eurasian Griffon and Cinereous Vultures, Golden, Spanish Imperial, Bonelli’s, Short-toed Snake, and Booted Eagles, Red and Black-winged Kites, Common Crane, Great and Little Bustards, Eurasian Stone-curlew, Black-winged Stilt, Pied Avocet, European Golden Plover, Northern Lapwing, Black-tailed and Bar-tailed Godwits, Common Greenshank, Common and Spotted Redshanks, Audouin’s, Slender-billed and Mediterranean Gulls, Little Tern, Black-bellied Sandgrouse, Iberian Green Woodpecker, Eurasian Hoopoe, Common Kingfisher, Iberian Yellow, Pied and White Wagtails, Water and Meadow Pipits, Bluethroat, Blue Rock Thrush, Sardinian and Dartford Warblers, Iberian Grey Shrike, Iberian Magpie, Long-tailed and Eurasian Penduline Tits, Spanish and Rock Sparrows, Eurasian Serin and Rock, Reed and Cirl Buntings.

Around Lisbon we’ll visit the famous Tagus Estuary Nature Reserves, the most important wetland in Portugal. A short drive of less than 90 minutes and we start to explore the Castro Verde rolling plains and the Guadiana Valley Natural Park, with the steppe like habitat, the hills, escarpments, and Cork and Holm oak and Stone Pine woodland of the Alentejo region; here, we shall find vultures, eagles and bustards; another short drive of less than one hour and we shall visit the Algarve, the southern tip region of Portugal, with its salt pans, lagoons, and beaches, with several protected wetlands, in order to find some of the more localized species of Europe.

All this birding activity is combined with visits to some of the most important wine producers in the main wine regions of Southern Portugal, giving an opportunity throughout the whole of our route to better understand the country’s rich wine heritage. At various times we’ll be joined by qualified wine makers who will help us learn to discern the subtle differences between the various regions, terroirs, wines and grapes. Besides the great wines, we’ll have numerous opportunities to sample Portugal’s many culinary delights.

Also, we shall have plenty of opportunities to enjoy the rich cultural heritage of Portugal, including some historical monuments and archaeological sites.